Conformal Rat Head Wearable Antenna for Transcranial RF Stimulation

A conformal rat head wearable antenna has been designed to provide unidirectional radiation to expose the head and brain for transcranial RF stimulation at 2.45 GHz (ISM band). The compactness of the microstrip patch has been achieved by using vertical slots in its orientation that increase its electrical length, without increasing the physical size of the antenna. The antenna layer is sandwiched between biocompatible and non-toxic layers of parylene-C. The antenna has been conformed and optimized for transcranial stimulation with a model of rat phantom that includes the properties of different layers of the rat's head (e.g. brain, skull, skin). Precise and controlled delivery of RF energy to specific brain regions is enabled by virtue of the compact size, conformal nature, and optimized design of the antenna. The proposed antenna demonstrates a unidirectional pattern, crucial for achieving reliable and effective stimulation outcomes and can be used in various biomedical applications, including transcranial RF stimulation.